Africa-Press – Lesotho. SIX Congolese medical doctors working at St Joseph Hospital in Roma have allegedly fled the country after the government questioned their qualifications.
The doctors were confronted by government officials during Operation Thoso (Arriving Unannounced) which Labour Minister Moshe Leoma says meant to weed out foreigners working in Lesotho illegally.
The six doctors were questioned about their qualifications. Leoma also found that some had dubious educational qualifications, raising doubts on the quality of vetting by both the Ministry of Health and the Medical, Dental and Pharmacy Council of Lesotho.
The doctors are from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Labour Ministry spokesman Tumisang Mokoai says it is not clear if they have skipped the country.
“During the operation, we managed to find out that there were six doctors who were operating without working permits while others were not qualified,” Mokoai said.
“We failed to get convincing answers from the management of the hospital regarding those doctors,” he said.
“The doctors decided to flee the hospital and went into hiding.
” Mokoai said the investigations are still going on.
He said what has happened at the hospital is a wake-up call to all employers that they should ensure their employees have valid work permits because they too will be charged.
“We will charge both of them,’’ he said.
The Executive Director of the Christian Health Association of Lesotho (CHAL), ’Makatleho Mohasi, said doctors are responsible for renewing their work permits.
Mohasi said for a doctor to work in a country, he or she has to go through the credential committee in the Ministry of Health where their credentials are verified.
The Ministry of Labour would then issue a permit based on the legitimacy of the certificates. He said all doctors at St. Joseph’s Hospital have work permits except the ones who are waiting for renewals.
Mohasi said she did not know anything about the DRC doctors who have been working at St. Joseph’s without valid documents. The Vice President of the Medical, Dental and Pharmacy Council of Lesotho, Dr Teboho Thabane, said “all doctors working in the country are obliged to register with them”.
Dr Thabane said they ensure that the qualifications of doctors working in the country are legit. “Every doctor in the country is expected to renew contracts that allow them to operate as doctors,” Dr Thabane said.
He said part of their mandate is to spot-check whether their doctors still hold the valid documents to work in Lesotho. Dr Thabane said “fraud is everywhere in the world and it is possible” that they could register someone who does not even qualify to be a doctor.
“It is normal for some doctors who are registered with the council to stop renewing their contracts with us, something which is illegal,” he said.
“The only challenge we come across is of doctors who work outside their scope,” he said.
Dr Thabane said in such matters, they investigate and issue warnings. He said the level of compliance among doctors working in the country is quite good.
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